awareness of potential dangers to babies and toddlers in the home.
The project, Starting Out Safely, will offer families information on home safety and basic safety equipment, free and direct to the home. The materials are designed to be appropriate for different key stages in a child's first three years of life - just after birth and then at their first, second and third birthdays.
Launching the project, deputy health minister Frank McAveety said that it was a 'sad and worrying fact' that children living in less well-off homes were more at risk. 'This can be because of a range of factors but they can include poor housing, older domestic equipment and the inability to afford some basic safety equipment,' he said.
'I hope parents will find these packs valuable, with the mixture of support and practical aids. It is also unique and extremely helpful that the packs are age-related, because a brand new baby faces quite different risks than a two-year-old, whose parents need eyes in the backs of their heads!'
The project was developed by a partnership involving NHS Greater Glasgow, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), the national child health initiative Starting Well and the lone parent organisation One Plus. It will be evaluated to measure the impact on parents' knowledge, reported levels and trends of accidents, and the effectiveness of the approach in reducing risk.
